Smoking Apparatus

Abstract

A smoking apparatus that is placed into the cooking chamber of an outdoor grill is disclosed. A heating element is housed in an ash container, elevated with a riser and secured together with riser anchors. An arm contains and protects the heating element, resistance wires, and connected conductor wires is attached to a handle which facilitates portability and houses an indicator light, thermostatic controller, conductor wires, and an adjustment knob assembly. A power cord provides alternating current including an earth ground. The smoking wood is placed on the heating element and the ash container is positioned directly on the grill. The lid of the outdoor grill is closed, and rests directly upon the arm, with the handle and power cord extending outside of the outdoor grill.

1 . A smoking apparatus for smoking food, comprising: 
 an ash containing means including a bottom wall and at least one side wall projecting upward from the bottom wall, the bottom wall having a lower surface and an upper surface;    a heating means, the heating means elevated above the bottom wall of the ash containing means by a riser rigidly connected thereto at a top end, the riser rigidly connected at a bottom end to the ash containing means;    a handle means comprising an elongated arm rigidly connected at a first end to the ash containing means, and a grip fixed to a second end of the handle means, the elongated arm including a top surface and a bottom surface, the bottom surface in coplanar alignment with the lower surface of the bottom wall of the ash containing means;    whereby a smoking fuel may be placed into the ash containing means onto the heating means to produce smoke, and whereby the ash containing means may be placed on a cooking grate of a grill with a grill cover of the grill resting on the top surface of the elongated arm to maintain the smoking apparatus in fixed relationship with the grill.    
   
   
       2 . The smoking apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the heating means is an electric heating element, the handle means further including insulated conductors for conducting electricity to the heating element from a power source.  
   
   
       3 . The smoking apparatus of  claim 2  further including an indicator light connected in parallel to the heating element for providing a visual indication of when the heating element is connected to the power source, the indicator light fixed to the handle means.  
   
   
       4 . The smoking apparatus of  claim 2  further including a thermostatic controller for selectively switching the heating element to the power source to maintain the heating element within a selected temperature range.  
   
   
       5 . The smoking apparatus of  claim 4  wherein the selected temperature range is between 350 and 550 degrees Fahrenheit.  
   
   
       6 . The smoking apparatus of  claim 4  wherein the selected temperature range is between 375 and 500 degrees Fahrenheit.  
   
   
       7 . The smoking apparatus of  claim 2  wherein the heating element is a spiral wound resistance wire.  
   
   
       8 . The smoking apparatus of  claim 7  wherein the resistance wire is substantially rectangular in cross-section.  
   
   
       9 . The smoking apparatus of  claim 7  wherein the resistance wire is substantially circular in cross-section.  
   
   
       10 . The smoking apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the ash containing means is substantially circular in plan view.  
   
   
       11 . The smoking apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the ash containing means is substantially rectangular in plan view.  
   
   
       12 . The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the heating means is a plurality of hot coals.  
   
   
       13 . The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the riser is rigidly connected to the top surface of the bottom wall of the ash containing means through a riser anchor means.  
   
   
       14 . The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the ash containing means further includes an additional weighted section whereby the ash containing means is discouraged from tipping.